ABSTRACT
Introduction If ethics is “aiming at the ‘good life’ with and for others in just institutions,” as suggested by philosopher Paul Ricoeur (1992, p. 192), how might we envision ethical action in a global community? What constitutes ethical health care when the moral horizon embraces the entire world? How do health professionals striving to be ethical re-orientate themselves to this broader understanding of their duties and responsibilities? The paramount risks to human health and well-being are now global ones with worldwide effects (Austin, 2001a). The undeniable interconnectedness of the global community, “There is no us and them anymore” (Ward, 2012, p. 6), requires a new way of thinking. The twenty-first century demands a global health ethic.
